Get the rat look

There is a saying "...only in the Potteries..." - accompanied by a shrug of the shoulders - meaning that it's so crazy it could only happen here.  (I suppose the phrase is used in lots of regions, but everyone likes to think it's unique to them.)

This car has been freshly painted.  Hard to believe.
Now, why anyone would want their car to look like it's been left in a field for thirty years I don't know, but if you too want your car to "have that rat look", just check out rustypaint.co.uk.

Like I say... only in the Potteries .... !

HS2 protest on the road

Yesterday's report from the government (see: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-24721214) about the proposed new high-speed west-coast rail line has provoked - as you'd guess - a lot of debate on the local radio and in the local papers.
Phase 1 of HS2 takes in southern Staffordshire, while Phase 2 would take in northern Staffordshire.

The debate is loud and furious, but the opposition voices are very well-drilled: I must admit that it's the first time that I've seen a small, local protest group, such as Marston Against HS2 (Marston is just a township), so organised as to get a promotional car out on the road...!

Transport fans rally round

Attending a vehicle rally - especially one with vintage cars and agricultural machinery - is one of the ways we English love to spend a Saturday afternoon. The owners turn up with their beloved and ancient machines, and we the public pay for the chance to inspect them, very often staring meaningfully at their engines and asking obscure questions.
To be frank, it's a bit of a mystery to me..! But such fairs definitely are popular.

The 1962 Metropolitan car in the photo here was at the Draycott-en-le-Moors fair at the weekend.